Nature Visions Photography
|
Gerard
Fuehrer Nature Visions Photography |
| Artist Statement |
|
|
"Getting the shot" was originally intended to delve into how I photograph wildlife, but it has evolved into a series of short stories pertaining to wildlife behavior that I have witnessed while photographing. I hope you enjoy!
|
"The Log Incident" I was out before daylight, navigating the woodland pond with my float-tube blind. The pond was a temporary home for a pair of green-winged teal during spring migration. I'd been watching the two ducks for a couple of days, trying to get a handle on their daily routine. The pair had a favorite log that they would roost on after feeding in the morning and afternoon. My goal was to photograph them roosting on the log around 10AM. As 10 o'clock rolled around the ducks were nowhere to be seen. This is not unusual so I decided to wait around a bit longer, even though I'd been in the water for over six hours. I sure could have used a cup of coffee! Well, before long it was noon and I figured that they were not going to return to this log on this day. I made the decision to exit the pond. This is not an easy decision to make because so many times before I would leave a photo site only to |
|
| find my subject entering
while I was leaving. This is frustrating! Well, this would be one of those
days. As I was leaving I noticed the two ducks making their way into the
pond. They'd been feeding within a nearby wetland and were now looking to
roost on their favorite log. I watched them as they paddled across the pond,
heading straight for the roost. Once they parked themselves onto the log I
began the slow process of working my way towards them. After eight hours in
the blind I wasn't exactly crazy about the idea, but I'd been in this
situation many times before. "You have to make hay when the sun shines" and
this was, possibly, my opportunity.
It took me 30 to 45 minutes to get myself into position to photograph the ducks. I had to quietly weave my way around several floating logs without being noticed by the ducks. The drake and hen were already sleeping when I got into position, I was twenty feet away. I took a few images of them sleeping, but I knew that once they woke up the action would begin. Of course, they would sleep for a while so I laid back to rest too. The two ducks roosted for nearly three hours, but during that time I saw something very interesting. The drake was sleeping so sound that his tiny body became limp and he rolled upside down and plopped into the water. After hitting the water, back first, he instantly corrected himself and for a moment looked around in confusion. After a second or two he jumped back up onto the log and went back to sleep. During this time the hen never moved a muscle, she'd obviously seen it before. So now when anyone asks me if a sleeping duck, these masters of their habitat, can fall off of a log, I can answer them absolutely yes! |
|
|
|
|
